MARYSVILLE -- A fine tuneup for a big match ahead. The Petoskey High School volleyball team finished runner-up Friday in the Marysville Invitational, bowing to Clarkston in the title match. The tournament, during which the Northmen finished 3-1-2 against some strong competition, was a good tuneup for Petoskey's Big North Conference battle at home against Cadillac on Tuesday, Aug. 28. The defending Big North champion Vikings are coming off a win at their own invitational last week and defeated Traverse City Central in their league opener.

The Pullman Greyhounds' golf team finished second in the final Great Northern League tournament, which clinched second-place in the regular season standings. While the second-place finish was a strong accomplishment, Pullman coach Craig McCormick was perhaps even more pleased with a handful of individal accomplishments. "We are pleased to qualify five of our guys to regionals," he said. "That was a great day for us. If they make the top 22 in that tournament -- out of 44 -- they will go to state.

MR. LITTLE, 739 Royal Palm Ave., Lady Lake, died Wednesday. Born in Pontiac, Mich., he moved to Lady Lake from Mount Clemens, Mich., in 1983. He was a retired manager for the Elks Lodge. He was a Protestant. He was a member of the Waterford Elks Lodge, Michigan, and the Orange Blossom Gardens Veterans of Foreign Wars. Survivors: daughter, Lori A., Lady Lake; son, Robert D. Carry, Clarkston, Mich.; brothers, Lamar, Decatur, Ga., Jack Stephens, Kalkaska, Mich.; granddaughter, Shanon Carry, Clarkston.

The Pullman boys' golf team placed fourth and the girls' team second at a Great Northern League tournament held at Palouse Ridge Golf Course on Thursday. The Hounds' Reid McPherson turned in a round of 78 to tie for fourth among boy individuals and nine strokes behind medalists Tyler Calrson of Clarkston. Pullman's Riley Devine carded an 88 to place eighth. On the girls' side, Olivia Kromm shot a 99 to tie for second. Teammate Becky Birchett carded a 104 and finished in fifth. Clarkston placed first overall, followed by Deer Park and East Valley.

Ira N. Keller, 77, 414 E. Pine St., Orlando, died Thursday. Born in Louisville, Ky., he moved to Orlando from Clarkston, Mich., in 1967. He was a retired owner of a dry cleaners and a member of First Baptist Church, Orlando. Survivors: son, Kenneth, Altamonte Springs; brother, Cliff, Louisville. Woodlawn Funeral Home, Orlando.

The Pullman boys' golf team placed fourth and the girls' team second at a Great Northern League tournament held at Palouse Ridge Golf Course on Thursday. The Hounds' Reid McPherson turned in a round of 78 to tie for fourth among boy individuals and nine strokes behind medalists Tyler Calrson of Clarkston. Pullman's Riley Devine carded an 88 to place eighth. On the girls' side, Olivia Kromm shot a 99 to tie for second. Teammate Becky Birchett carded a 104 and finished in fifth. Clarkston placed first overall, followed by Deer Park and East Valley.

both in terms of weather and the play on the field -- but the Pullman Greyhounds soccer team survived a loser-out game in the first round of the district playoffs Thursday, defeating Clarkston 3-0 on a field that resembled a Slip 'n Slide in the closing minutes. Pullman got on the board quickly when a shot deflected by Clarkston keeper Sean West ricocheted to sophomore Alexi Barnstone, who found the back of the net in the sixth minute. Just minutes later, Barnstone made a key play defensively to break up a potential scoring threat for Clarkston.

LEESBURG -- Jean Majiol Anderson was as comfortable wielding a hammer and saw as she was whirling around a skating rink on a pair of roller skates. As a teenager and a young woman, she entered professional skating competitions in Pennsylvania, Ohio and Michigan. When she was a little older, Anderson upholstered sofas and chairs that filled her homes and friends' houses. Her son, Scott Anderson of Clarkston, Mich., said she also undertook remodeling projects on the exterior and interior of her homes.

CHESTERTOWN, Md. -- A man who fired a shotgun at three women riding home from a Christmas shopping trip, killing one, was sentenced Friday to life in prison. His brother, who had pursued the women for 20 miles on an isolated road, received a term of 25 years. A passenger in the car, 73-year-old Germaine Clarkston, was struck in the hip Dec. 4 and died two days later. The driver, Michelle Wilson, was hit in the leg by shrapnel but not seriously injured. David Starkey Jr., 25, maintained that the double-barreled shotgun went off by mistake.

A school bus and a tractor-trailer collided on a rural highway in southeastern Washington on Saturday, killing the bus driver and injuring at least 47 students. Authorities said the road was wet when the accident occurred about 25 miles east of Pasco. The bus from the Country Haven Academy, a Seventh-day Adventist high school in Pasco, was returning from an overnight choir trip to Clarkston.

MRS. VAILLIENCOURT, 260 Division St., Clermont, died Saturday, Dec. 19. She was a homemaker. Born in Clarkston, Mich., she moved to Central Florida in 1988. She was a member of First United Methodist Church, Clermont. She was a member of the Boys Scouts of America, Michigan Association of Extension Homemakers and Family Motorcoach Association. Survivors: husband, Thomas J.; son, Joseph S., Ventura, Calif.; daughter, Barbara Grace Montgomery, Columbus, Ga.; one grandchild. Becker Funeral Home, Clermont.